Samuel Beckett originally wrote his most famous play, Waiting for Godot, in 1948, in French, as he believed it forced him to be more disciplined and to use language more wisely. He called his play a tragicomedy and it opened in the Theatre de Babylone in Paris on 5 January 1953. Highly praised by dramatists such as Tennessee Williams, Jean Anouilh, Thornton Wilder, and William Saroyan, Waiting for Godot was to become one of the most important dramatic works of the 20th century as it presented a world in which reasonitself seemed to absent – a far cry from the realism audiences had come to expect. The influences of Jarry (Ubu Rex) , Artaud and Priandello converge in this seemingly simple play where nothing happens – twice.
A country road and a single tree set the scene for the dialogues between Vladimir (Didi) and Estragon (Gogo), two tramps who are waiting for Godot. They embody the hopelessness, dependence and isolation of man in the modern world as they discuss their boots, hats, philosophy, religion, the prospect of hanging themselves, but otherwise do nothing. A boy then arrives to say Godot is not coming, night falls and ends the first act. The only relief they have is the arrival of Pozzo and Lucky, a master and servant who seem to enjoy their sadomasochistic relationship, which highlights the exploitation and humiliation in human relationships. The Second act of Waiting for Godot is a repeat of the first with Vladimir and Estragon discussing the same topics as in Act I and when Pozzo and Lucky arrive Pozzo is blind and cannot remember them. The circular action of the play highlights the characters' continuous waiting and their inability to move on as they are unable to finish what they are doing. The end of the second act is the same as the first with Vladimir and Estragon pronouncing they will leave but then sitting and staying.
The play has had many interpretations, in particular one religious interpretation has Vladimir and Estragon awaiting the return of the saviour, and political interpretations have included seeing the play as an allegory for Franco-German relations or, using a Marxists interpretation, one can understand Pozzo as the capitalist and Lucky as the labourer. However the play has been most often viewed as underpinned by existentialism, that is, the characters are constantly struggling to prove their existence. Waiting for Godot is also a very good example of Theatre of the Absurd which doing away with the concepts of realism, chronological plot, logical language, themes and recognizable settings.
The most obvious interpretation of God(ot) is that he is God even though very little is said about him except that he doesn't come. However another interpretation has a different emphasis -- (God)ot as a name is similar to Charlot, the name used by the French for vaudeville's Charlie Chaplin, God's little victim enmeshed in life but eternally optimistic. This interpretation allows for the energy Waiting for Godot uses in the slapstick, distilled vaudeville routines and antiphonal (responsive alternation) conversation. These techniques epitomize traditional routines that come from farce without ever being pastiche, employing them to illustrate Waiting for Godot view of man's absurd hope and of the absurd insignificance of man.